The Australian ant genus Froggattella.

AMERICAN MUSEUM NOVIl ATES

-NT 1 ^4^ Published by

JN umber 842 The American museum of Natural Histokt ADrill3 1936

New York City '^ '

THE AUSTRALIAN ANT GENUS FROGGATTELLA

By William Morton Wheeler

Forel, in 1902, based the genus Froggattella on the worker of a small
Australian ant, which, owing to its aberrant characters, has had a rather
varied career in myrmecological literature. Originally described by
Lowne as long ago as 1865 as Acantholepis kirbyi and therefore as-
signed to what is now a very different subfamily, the Formicinae,
it was correctly recognized by Mayr in 1870 as a dolichoderine and
placed by him in his genus Hypoclinea. When the members of this
genus were divided between DoUckoderus Lund and Iridomyrmex
Mayr, Dalla Torre, in 1893, assigned kirbyi to the former. According
to Forel, however, dissection shows that Lowne's ant deserves to rank
as the type of an independent genus, because it has a gizzard like that
of Iridomyrmex and quite unlike that of Dolichoderus and possesses
a more developed sting than any dolichoderine genus, except Aneuretus
Emery. In the dolichoderine fascicle of Wytsman's ' Genera Insectorum'
(1912) Emery therefore placed Froggattella in his tribe Tapinomini,
which contains the great majority of the genera of the subfamily {Semo-
nius, Liometopum, Turneria, Dorymyrmex, Iridomyrmex, Bothriomyrmex,
Azteca, Forelius, Engramma, Tapinoma, Zatapinoma and Technomyr-
mex). My discovery of the female and male of Froggattella, while I
was accompanying the Harvard Austrahan Expedition in 1931, yields
additional proof of its relationship to Iridomyrmex and at the same time
confirms Forel's view of its status as an independent genus. One of his
characters, however, should be dropped from the generic diagnosis.
I have dissected out the gizzard and sting of a number of workers and
females of Froggattella and am able to confirm his account of the gizzard
as being essentially like that of Iridomyrmex, but not his statement
that the sting is "fort distinct a la dissection, bien plus petit que chez
Aneuretus, mais plus fort que chez les autres genres de la sous-famille."
In all my preparations the sting shows no greater development than in
Dolichoderus {decollatus) or Iridomyrmex {delectus). In all three forms
the parts of the sting proper, namely the palpi, sting-sheath and lancets,
are nonsclerotized, small and, making allowance for the differences in
size of the three species, reduced to precisely the same vestigial condition,

2 AMERICAN MUSEUM NOVITATES [No. 842

though the quadrate, triangular and oblong plates are clearly differenti-
ated and in part sclerotized as in other aculeates.

Froggattella Forel

FoREL, 1902, Rev. Suisse Zool., x, p. 459 S ; Emery, 1912, 'Genera Insectorum,'
p. 20 a .

Worker. — Monomorphic, with hard integument. Head subcordiform, shaped
like that of Iridomyrmex; eyes moderately large, feebly convex, just in front of the
middle of the sides; ocelli absent. Mandibles well-developed, subtriangular, with
dentate masticatory and minutely denticulate basal borders. Maxillary palpi 6-
jointed, labial palpi 4-iointed. Clypeus rather large, ecarinate, with entire anterior
border and the posterior border broadly rounded in the middle and extending bacli
between the frontal carinae, which are rather widely separated and subparallel.
Frontal groove and sutures bounding the frontal area indistinct. Antennae 12-
jointed; funiculi somewhat enlarged but not clavate at their tips; first funicular
joint as long as the following two subequal joints together. Thorax slender, with
pronounced, sellate mesoepinotal impression; promesonotal suture distinct, meso-
epinotal suture obsolete dorsally; pronotum large, hemispherical; mesonotum long,
parallel-sided with marginate mesosterna; metanotal spiracles prominent, closely
approximated, projecting dorsally just in front of the deepest portion of the meso-
epinotal impression; epinotum long, its base armed posteriorly with a pair of blunt,
flattened, horizontal, subspatulate or subtriangular and sometimes incurved spines,
which bear the epinotal spiracles on their expanded bases or even near their tips;
declivity concave as in Dolichoderus. Petiole long, with very short anterior and very
long posterior peduncle, the scale well-developed but low, thick, transverse, strongly
inchned forward, fitting into the concave epinotal declivity. First gastric segment
concave at the base, overlying the posterior peduncle of the petiole. ' Gizzard very
similar to that of Iridomyrmex, with large, reflected calyx. Middle and hind tibiae
with well-developed, pectinated spurs; tarsal claws simple.

Female. — Much larger than the worker and closely resembling the female of
Iridomyrmex. Eyes larger and more convex than in the worker; ocelh large, widely
separated. Thorax elongate, the epinotum simple, without spines and with the
spiracles in the usual position on the sides. Petiole stouter than in the worker, its
scale much thicker, nodiform, its posterior peduncle much shorter. Gaster elongate-
elliptical as in Iridomyrmex, the first segment narrowed and marginate anteriorly
above a distinct basal cavity which overlies the peduncle. Fore wings with a long,
closed submarginal cell, two large, complete cubital cells and a discoidal cell; ptero-
stigma narrow, elongate, consisting of a darker-colored portion of the wing-membrane
bounded anteriorly and posteriorly by distinct continuations of the costal and sub-
costal veins.

Male. — Not larger than the worker, resembling the male of Iridomyrmex.
Head broad, with very large, convex eyes and ocelli and very short cheeks. Mandi-
bles small, pointed, edentate, not meeting in the middle line. Frontal carinae very
short, as far apart as their distance from the lateral borders of the cheeks. Antennae
short, gradually tapering toward their tips, 13-jointed, scapes very short, scarcely
longer than the fir.st funicular joint, which is not enlarged. Thorax voluminous,
mesonotum without notauli (Mayrian furrows), convex anteriorly and overhanging

1936] AUSTRALIAN ANT GENUS FROGGATTELLA 3

the short pronotum; epinotum sloping, rounded, without traces of spines. Petiole
quite unlike that of the worker and female, being very small and short, nodiform,
posteriorly broadly applied to the base of the subelliptical gaster, the first segment of
which is narrowed anteriorly but does not overhang the petiole. Cerci present.
Genitalia small, exserted. Fore wings with a long, closed submarginal cell, a discoidal
cell and only a single cuboidal cell; pterostigma proportionally larger than in the
female, consisting of a uniform thickening, in which the costal and subcostal veins are
indiscernible.

Colonies of Froggattella, according to my observations, are nowhere
common in Australia. Its geographical range extends from the Cape
York Peninsula of Queensland to southern New South Wales and
southwestward into South Australia. It probably occurs in the dryer
parts of Victoria, but I have seen no specimens from that state, nor is
there any record of its occurrence in Central or West Australia. Among
my material I am able to distinguish at least seven different forms, six
of which may be regarded as so many subspecies of Mrbyi since at least
most of them seem to be confined to particular geographical or ecological
environments. The seventh form, from Port Lincoln, South Australia,
is an undescribed species {F. latispina, new species).

Were the worker of Froggattella unknown, the female and male would
be assigned without hesitation to the genus Iridomyrmex, in which even
the sexual difference in the number of cubital cells of the fore wings has
been observed. The worker Froggattella, on the other hand, differs
greatly from the female not only in its smaller size and in the structure
of the thorax and petiole but also, as will be shown in the specific de-
scription {vide infra p. 6) in the more superficial characters of sculpture,
pilosity and color. To my knowledge the only ants that exhibit strictly
comparable differences are the species of Colobopsis (genus Camponotus)
belonging to the Fijian dentatus group, notably C bryani Santschi and
manni Wheeler, which I have discussed in a recent paper, ^ and certain
species of the Neotropical subgenus Myrmodadoecus (genus Campono-
tus), especially bidens Mayr, callistus Emery, corniculatus Wheeler, etc.,
in which the thorax and petiole of the small workers are surprisingly
like the corresponding parts of the worker Froggattella and quite unlike
those of their cospecific females. These species of Colobopsis and Myrmo-
dadoecus, however, possess forms (soldiers in Colobopsis, major and media
workers in Myrmodadoecus) which bridge the gap between the smallest
worker and the female caste. In Froggattella no such intermediates oc-
cur so that the contrast in structure between the worker and female is

' 'Some Aberrant Species of Camponotus {Colobopsis} from the Fiji Islands.' 1934, Ann. Ent. Soc.
Amer., XXVII, pp. 415-424, 5 figs.

4 AMERICAN MUSEUM NOVITATES [No. 842

more startling. Though the genus is in all probability an ancient spe-
cialized offshoot of Iridomyrmex, which has monomorphic workers,
we may perhaps assume that Froggattella originally possessed di- or
polymorphic workers like Colobopsis and Myrniodadoecus and that the
larger forms or soldiers have been lost completely during phylogeny.
In this respect Froggattella would resemble such myrmicine genera as
Carebara, Erebomyrmex, Paedalgus and most species of Solenopsis,
which have also lost the major worker or soldier caste that still exists
in Solenopsis geminata and in allied genera such as Oligomyrmez, Aero-
myrma, etc. Since the extraordinarily similar thoracic and petiolar struc-
ture of the workers of Froggattella and of the smallest workers of certain
species of Colobopsis and Myrmocladoecus represent quite independent
lines of descent, we must assume that these ants exhibit an unusually
interesting example of "convergence," or what German biologists have
recently been calling "typovergence."

There are no data in the literature on the habits of Froggattella kirbyi,
except Lowne's remark that he found it "under loose bark in spring and
early summer." Colonies or portions of colonies may, perhaps, hiber-
nate in such situations, but I am convinced that Lowne did not see the
true nest. Although I made many myrmecological excursions in New
South Wales in 1914 and 1931, I encountered Froggattella only on seven
or eight occasions and always in the dry, open Eucalyptus bush. The
workers were ascending and descending the trunks of small trees in
straggling files and were evidently visiting coccids or psyllids on the
foliage. On four occasions I succeeded in tracing the insects to their
nests. Two of these, belonging to the subspecies bispinosus Forel, were
observed near Southerland, N. S. W., on November 23 and December 1,
1914. Of the other two, which I refer to the typical kirbyi, one was found
December 26, 1931, in the National Park, the other on the following day
at Epping, N. S. W. All these nests were in small, dead, standing trees
whose trunks measured only two and one-half to three inches in diameter.
When broken open their wood was found to be tunneled throughout
with narrow galleries occupied by a population of many hundreds of
workers with quantities of brood in all stages. The National Park
colony contained also dozens of mature males and winged females,
the Epping colony a great number of males but few females. The
workers were inoffensive like many of the smaller species of Iridomyrmex
so frequently encountered in the Australian bush. Some of these (e. g.,
nitidus Emery) also regularly form very populous colonies in dead
wood.

1936] AUSTRALIAN ANT GENUS FROGGATTELLA 5

Key for the Identification of the Froggattella Workers

1. — Larger forms, averaging 2.3-3.7 mm.; head subcordate, decidedly broader and
laterally more convex behind than in front; funicular joints all distinctly
longer than broad; epinotal spines dorsoventrally flattened, compressed and
subspatulate, bearing the spiracles on their expanded bases; meso- and epino-

tum sharply, longitudinally rugose 2.

Smaller form, averaging 2.2-2.5 mm.; head much narrower and laterally less
convex behind the eyes; funicular joints 3-10 as broad as long; epinotal spines
thicker, shorter, subtriangular, bearing the spiracles near their tips; meso-
and epinotum sharply and finely reticulate, with faint longitudinal rugules.
South Australia latispina, n. sp.

2. — Mesoepinotal impression rather shallow, the base of the epinotum in profile

rising from it gradually and with feeble convexity 3.

Mesoepinotal impression deeper and more pronounced, the base of the epinotum
rising abruptly, with strong convexity 5.

3. — Epinotal spines narrow and rather slender. Length, 3.6-3.7 mm. New South

Wales kirbyi Lowne (typical).

Epinotal spines distinctly broader 4.

4. — Superior border of petiolar node thick and entire; legs brown; gaster subopaque,

with violet metallic reflections. Length, 2.5-3.5 mm. Queensland

ianthina, n. jub"p.

Superior border of petiolar node thinner, distinctly impressed in the middle;
femora and tibiae black; gaster shining, with faint greenish reflections; head
and thorax more distinctly microscopically reticulate. Length, 2.5-3.5 mm.
Queensland nigripes, n. subsp,

5. — Antennal scapes nearly or quite reaching the posterior border of the head; head,

thorax and petiole red. Length, 2.5-3.3 mm. New South Wales

subsp. bispinosa Forel.

Antennal scapes shorter; head, thorax and petiole paler 6.

6. — Smaller and more slender (2.3-2.8 mm.); posterior border of head nearly straight;
superior border of petiolar node broadly rounded; head, thorax, petiole and
legs brownish yellow; gaster brown. New South Wales, .lutescens, n. subsp.
Larger and more robust (3-3.5 mm.); head broader and laterally more convex
behind, its posterior border distinctly concave; antennal scapes shorter;
epinotal spines broader; superior border of petiolar node broader, distinctly
impressed in the middle; head, thorax and petiole yellowish red; femora and

tibiae yellowish brown; gaster very dark brown. South Australia

laiiceps, n. subsp.

Froggattella kirbyi (Lowne)
Acaniholepis kirbyi Lowne, 1865, The Entomologist, II, p. 333, B .
Hypoclinea kirbyi Mayr, 1870, Verh. Zool. bot. Ges. Wien, XX, p. 956, S .
Dolichoderus kirbyi Dalla Torre, 1893, 'Cat. Hymen.,' VII, p. 159, § .
Froggattella kirbyi Forel, 1902, Rev. Suisse Zool., X, p. 459, S ; Emery, 1912,
'Genera Insect.,' p. 21, S .

Worker. — Length, 3.5-3.7 mm.

Head distinctly longer than broad, decidedly broader behind than in front.

6 AMERICAN MUSEUM NOVITATES [No. 842

with rather straight, anteriorly converging cheeks, the sides behind the eyes convex,
the posterior corners broadly rounded, the posterior border broadly and feebly excised.
Eyes elliptical, situated about one and one fourth their length from the posterior
clypeal suture. Mandibles convex, with rounded external border, the masticatory
border with 7-8 teeth, the two apical teeth large, the others subequal, broad and di-
rected very slightly backward. Clypeus feebly and evenly convex, its anterior border
straight and transverse in the middle, sinuate on each side. Frontal area large, tri-
angular, not impressed, indistinctly defined. Antennal scapes narrow and distinctly
flattened at the base, widening apically, not reaching the posterior border of the
head by a distance equal to the greatest diameter of their tips; first funicular joint
twice as long as broad; joints 7-10 as broad as long, terminal joint not longer than
the two preceding joints together. Pronotum without the neck as broad as long,
convex above and laterally; mesonotum less than half as broad as the pronotum,
rectangular, about one-third longer than broad, its dorsal outline in profile straight
and sloping to the mesoepinotal impression with the dorsally projecting metanotal
spiracles just behind its middle third. Epinotum about as long as the mesonotum,
widened behind ventrally, its base in profile rising in a gradual even curve from the
mesoepinotal impression and becoming straight and horizontal where it is continued
into the spines. Seen from above the bases of the spines are angularly widened, their
blunt, flattened, distal portions rather narrow and subparallel, more than twice
as long as broad, slightly deflected at their tips. Declivity of epinotum shorter than
the base, semicircularly concave in profile. Petiole from above fully twice as long as
broad, broader in front than behind, with posteriorly slightly concave sides, the
inclined scale with straight, transverse summit and rectangular corners. In profile
the petiole is fully twice as long as high, the scale very blunt, projecting beyond the
anterior border of the segment. Legs long and stout, the femora, especially the fore
pair, distinctly thickened in the middle.

Smooth and shining, with fine, sparse, piligerous punctures; antennal scapes
more densely punctulate; neck sharply, base of epinotum more superficially reticu-
late; mesonotum, gaster and legs microscopically and superficially shagreened;
mesonotum, mesoepinotal impression and sides of epinotum regularly, sharply and
longitudinally rugose, with the interrugal spaces finely and rather superficially reticu-
late. The rugae, which are somewhat less numerous in the mid-dorsal region of the
mesonotum, pass without interruption across the impression which represents the
mesoepinotal suture.

Hairs and pubescence white or pale yellowish, the former generally distributed,
erect, sparse, delicate, of uneven length, longer on the body than on the appendages;
pubescence fine, appressed, moderately dense, distinct only on the clypeus, funiculi,
coxae and tibiae.

Bright red or yellowish red; gaster black, with blue reflections; legs, including
the coxae and sometimes the petiole, brown; tarsi yellowish; teeth of mandibles,
tips of antennae and last joint of tarsi blackish.

Female. — Length, 7-8.5 mm.; fore wings 7.5 mm.

Head resembling that of the worker, but proportionally larger, broader anteriorly,
with broader and more deeply concave posterior border, sharper posterior corners,
larger and more convex eyes. Frontal area more distinct, but not impressed. An-
tennal scapes proportionally shorter, their tips reaching only to the lateral ocelli or

1936] AUSTRALIAN ANT GENUS FROGGATTELLA 7

slightly beyond. Pronotum narrowed toward the neck, much narrower than the
mesonotum, which is longer than broad, produced and narrowly rounded anteriorly,
scutellum as long as broad, epinotum subtrapezoidal from above, as long as broad,
narrowed posteriorly, its base in profile moderately convex, somewhat sloping, pass-
ing rather abruptly into the declivity, which is distinctly concave and not more than
a third as long as the base. The epinotal spines of the worker are represented by a
very small, low welt on each side at the posterior end of the base. Petiole from above
only about one-fourth longer than broad, as broad behind as in front, with concave
sides and with the scale of the worker replaced by a transversely elliptical node, twice
as broad as long, flattened above, with nearly perpendicular anterior and sloping
posterior surface and the posterior peduncle much shorter than the node. Gaster
long, with subparallel sides, the first segment narrowed anteriorly, with concave,
marginate median border and sharply marginate anterior corners; in profile with the
base deeply concave at its junction with the postpetiole.

Subopaque, or lustrous; legs and petiole more shining; head and thorax punc-
tate-rugulose, the rugules dehcate, longitudinal on the clypeus, front and mesonotum
transverse on the occiput, pronotum and base of epinotum, where they are arcuate
and coarser. Mandibles finely reticulate and coarsely and sparsely punctate. Petiole,
gaster, scapes and legs finely reticulate-punctate.

Hairs as in the worker but the appressed pubescence much more abundant,
longer and investing all parts of the body except the petiole, though nowhere con-
cealing the integument except on the gaster where it becomes very dense and snow
white at the posterior border of each segment, thus forming a rather broad, sharply
defined, band. The pubescence of each band converges sharply at the mid-dorsal
line but turns laterally on each side, becoming transverse on the sides of the gaster.

Head, thorax and petiole dull yellowish red; gula, epinotum and petiole some-
what paler; sides of clypeus, front and vertex blackish brown as are also the
scutellum, a large spot on the posterior portion of the mesonotum, continued forward
as a narrow median vitta and two broader parapsidal vittae and a large elliptical spot
on each side, covering the posterior portion of the pronotum and the mesopleurae.
Legs dark brown, with the coxae and extensor surfaces of the femora and tibiae black;
gaster deep black except for the sharply contrasting fasciae of dense white pubescence.
Wings colorless, with pale brown veins and dark brown pterostigma.

Male. — Length, 3-3.5 mm.

Head small, about one-fourth broader than long through the eyes, flattened;
ocelli transversely elliptical, the anterior one surrounded in front by a deep semi-
circular groove, the posterior directed laterally and connected by a straight, thick,
transverse welt. Clypeus with a circular median convexity, its anterior border
rounded and somewhat projecting in the middle, sinuate on each side, frontal area
convex, triangular, slightly longer than broad. Antennal scapes only one and one-
half times as long as broad; first funicular joint slightly shorter than the second,
which like all the joints except the last is nearly as broad as long. Thorax much
broader than the head, the large mesonotum as broad as long; scutellum as long as
broad, shaped like the mesonotum but reversed; epinotum evenly rounded and slop-
ing in profile, without distinct base and declivity. Petiole nearly twice as broad as
long, wider behind than in front, in profile higher than long, the node broadly rounded
and medially impressed above; postpetiole broadly articulated to the gaster so that the

8 AMERICAN MUSEUM NOVITATES [No. 842

anterior slope of the node is long and steep, the posterior slope very short and rounded.
Stipites of genitalia very small, subtriangular, their tips rounded, their bases very
largely membranous; volsellae long, slender, falcate, with acute tips; sagittae broad,
subelliptical, with finely serrate ventral borders.

Shining, finely reticulate or shagreened, with fine scattered, piligerous punctures.

Pilosity as in the worker but shorter and sparser; appressed pubescence generally
distributed, as in the female, but shorter and much more dilute, not dimming the
shining integument, absent on the petiole.

Black; mandibles, mouth parts, tibiae, tarsi, petiole and genitalia piceous; first
funicular joint and articulations, veins and pterostigma of wings paler and more
yellowish brown.

The type locality, as recorded by Lowne, is Sydney. I have three
topotypes collected by Mr. W. W. Froggatt and have seen many speci-
mens from the following localities in New South Wales: National
Park S 9 cf , Hornsby S , and Southerland 8 (Wheeler) ; Epping
S 9 cf (Wheeler, F. R. Taylor) ; La Perouse S (W. M. Mann) ; As-
quith S (H. P. Schrader).

I believe that I am correct in my identification of this, the typical
form of the species. Unfortunately Lowne's and Mayr's descriptions
are deplorably inadequate. Forel, who examined Lowne's type in
Mayr's collection at Vienna says only that it differs from his own var.
bispinosa in having the head narrower behind and not or scarcelj'
excised and in having the base of the epinotum rising less abruptly from
the mesoepinotal impression.

Froggatella kirbyi nigripes, new subspecies

Worker. — Length, 2.8-3.3 mm.

Very similar to the typical kirbyi, but differing in the following characters:
epinotum shorter, the bases of its spines less angularly set off from their terminal
portion, which is shorter, broader and more incurved. Pctiolar node somewhat less
inclined forward, its summit in profile thinner and more pointed, seen from behind
transverse and distinctly impressed in the middle.

Microscopic reticulation of head and thorax distinctly coarser and more pro-
nounced, especially between the longitudinal rugae of the meso- and epinotum.
These latter regions and the petiole are also darker and more brownish than the head
and pronotum. Tips of scapes, last joint of funiculi, lower portions of pleurae and
coxae and in some specimens also the vertex of the head dark brown or fuscous;
femora and tibiae black; gaster black with greenish reflections.

Thirteen specimens, taken by Dr. P. J. Darhngton during May,
1932, at Coen, on the Cape York Peninsula, Queensland.

Froggatella kirbyi ianthina, new subspecies
Worker. — Length, 2.5-3.5 mm.
Closely resembling the two preceding forms and like them with shallow meso-

1936] AUSTRALIAN ANT GENUS FROGGATTELLA 9

epinotal impression, without anteriorly abrupt base of the epinotum, but the head is
distinctly narrower and less convex laterally, the antennal scapes somewhat shorter,
the epinotal spines broader and shorter than in nigripes with their bases more ex-
panded and more angulate laterally. Color and sculpture of head and thorax as in
the typical kirbyi, but with the rugae of the meso- and epinotum less uniform. Legs
paler brown than in the typical kirbyi. Gaster subopaque, densely and sharply
shagreened, with pronounced metallic violet reflections.

Two specimens which I took November 10 and 12, 1914, near Bris-
bane, Queensland. The one taken on the latter date is the larger and
may be regarded as the type, the other has the gaster more shining and
seems to be transitional to the typical kirbyi. The true status of this
subspecies cannot be determined without additional material.

Froggattella kirbyi, subspecies bispinosa Forel
Froggattella kirbyi var. bispinosa Fobel, 1902, Rev. Suisse Zool., X, p. 460, 8 ;
Embby, 1912, 'Genera Insect.,' p. 21, S .
WoEKEB. — Length, 2.5-3.3 mm.

This form differs from the typical kirbyi and the preceding subspecies in its dis-
tinctly smaller average size, in having the head somewhat broader and laterally more
convex behind, the occipital border more concave, the antennal scapes nearly or quite
reaching the posterior border and the mesoepinotal impression distinctly deeper,
with the base of the epinotum rising anteriorly with a more abrupt curve and form-
ing a more distinct angle with the horizontal posterior portion. The superior border
of the petiolar node seen from behind is feebly convex, with more rounded lateral
corners. The epinotal spines are like those of the typical kirbyi as are also the color,
pilosity and sculpture.

Forel records this form from Sydney and Oatley, New South Wales
(W. W. Froggatt). I assign to it a large number of workers which I
collected November 23 and 26 and December 2, 1914. at Southerland,
near Sydney.

Froggattella kirbyi lutescens, new subspecies

WoEKBE. — Length, 2.3-2.8 mm.

Structurally very similar to the subsp. bispinosa but averaging smaller; scapes
not reaching to the posterior border of the head which is nearly straight. Micro-
scopic reticulate sculpture even feebler and more superficial so that the head and
pronotum are smoother and more shining, the interrugal reticulation of the meso-
and epinotum less distinct. Color of head, thorax and petiole paler and more brown-
ish yellow, head slightly darker; mandibles, clypeus and antennae yellow; legs
brownish yellow, concolorous with the thorax and petiole; gaster dark brown, the
first segment paler brown or in some specimens even yellowish at the base.

Seven workers taken by Mr. W. W. Froggatt near Sydney, New South
Wales, and received from Mr. John Clark. These specimens were
labelled "var. bispinosa Forel, cotypes." It is quite possible that Forel
based his variety on specimens of what I regard as two different forms.

10 AMERICAN MUSEUM NOVITATES [No. 842

His description, however, is certainly more applicable to the form for
which I have retained his name.

Froggattella kirbyi laticeps, new subspecies

Worker. — Length, 3-3.5 mm.

More robust than the typical bispinosa, head proportionally larger and broader
behind, with sharper, less rounded posterior corners and more deeply excised posterior
border. Antennal scapes decidedly shorter, not attaining the posterior border of the
head by at least one and one-half times their greatest diameter. Pronotum, excluding
neck, broader than long; mesonotum only one and one-fourth times as long as broad;
mesoepinotal impression as in bispinosa, but the epinotum is longer, its spines broader.
Superior border of petiole seen from behind distinctly impressed in the middle, with
more angular corners than in bispinosa. Sculpture and pilosity as in that subspecies
except that the rugae on the dorsal surface of the mesonotum are finer and the gaster
is more sharply shagreened. Head, thorax and petiole of a distinctly paler, more
yellowish red or reddish yellow, the femora and tibiae yellowish brown, the gaster
very dark brown instead of black.

Described from numerous specimens collected by Mr. B. A. Feuer-
heerdt at Lucindale, South Australia.

Froggattella latispina, new species

WoKKEB. — Length, 2.2-2.5 mm.

Smaller than any of the subspecies of kirbyi and differing in the shape of the
head and epinotal spines, in sculpture, etc. Head longer in proportion to its width,
narrowed posteriorly so that the sides behind the eyes are less convex and more nearly
parallel, the posterior border nearly straight; antennal scapes very short, not reaching
the posterior border of the head by fully twice their greatest diameter; funicular
joints 3-10 distinctly shorter than in the various forms of kirbyi, not longer than
broad. Eyes slightly more convex. Pronotum less convex, broader than long with-
out the neck; promesonotal suture more deeply impressed; mesonotum shorter,
scarcely one and one-fourth times as long as broad; metanotal spiracles less pro-
jecting dorsally; mesoepinotal impression somewhat deeper and more abrupt than
in the subsp. bispinosa; epinotum somewhat longer than broad, the base convex,
rising abruptly from the mesoepinotal impression and terminating behind in two very
broad, thick spines only sUghtly longer than the width of their bases from which they
taper rapidly to very blunt tips. They are not curved inward and their mesial borders
when seen from above form a perfect semicircle with the median posterior border of
the base included between them. The epinotal spiracles are borne on the sides of the
spines near their tips. Epinotal declivity much shorter and much more deeply con-
cave in profile than in any of the forms of kirbyi. Petiole distinctly shorter but the
node shaped as in the subsp. bispinosa with its superior border feebly convex when
seen from behind.

Microscopic reticulation of the body and appendages much more pronounced
than in any of the other forms of kirbyi, especially on the head, meso- and epinotum.
On the front the reticulation becomes longitudinal so that the surface has a finely
granulated-striolate appearance. On the meso- and epinotum it is even coarser and

1936] AUSTRALIAN ANT GENUS FROGGATTELLA 11

the sharp longitudinal rugae of kirbyi are reduced to fine granular rugules except on
the mesoepinotal impression which is traversed by the usual sharp rugae or costae.
Pronotum, epinotal declivity and petiolar node much smoother and more shining
than the head; costae on the posterior peduncle of the petiole well developed.

Erect hairs white and distributed much as in kirbyi and its subspecies but dis-
tinctly shorter on the body and decidedly less numerous on the legs.

Head yellowish red; coxae, thorax and petiole slightly paler; mandibles and
antennae yellow; last joint of funiculi fuscous; femora and tibiae brown; gaster
brown-black.

Described from 10 workers collected by Mr. A. M. Lea at Port
Lincoln, South Australia.